LAKE FOREST, Ill – Chris Beatty is being pulled in more directions than ever these days, now that the Bears receivers coach has been promoted to offensive coordinator.

The longtime assistant coach feels the need to delegate at times during meetups, and he turns the spotlight over to an unlikely individual.

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Veteran receiver Keenan Allen is the respected substitute, having earned Beatty’s full trust after working with him these past four seasons with the Chargers and Bears.

“Keenan is the smartest player I’ve ever seen,” Beatty said. “He’s the smartest football person, not just player. …He sees stuff different from the rest of us.”

He sees tendencies and coverages as well as anyone.

“He’s a play ahead, just like a coach would be,” Beatty said Thursday, in his first press conference as offensive coordinator. “What he has done over the last three weeks since the initial change was he’s been my conduit for those guys. He runs the meeting in between while they’re doing the special teams. He gets all the offensive skill in there and does a meeting. He knows how I want it to look. Those guys have been joking that he’s saying my sayings, which I’m good with that. If he’s saying my stuff, then that means he respects what I’m doing.

“He’s taken a little bit bigger of a leadership role. He’s really not as outgoing as you guys think he is. But he’s been a little bit more.”

Allen sees stuff. And he’s not afraid to identify it.

That applies to off-field issues, too. He was earnest pointing out why it didn’t work out with offensive coordinator Shane Waldron. He could sense a possible change at the head coach, even before Matt Eberflus was let go. Then the Lions game happened, and Allen was candid saying the players did enough to win games. He could sense frustration in the locker room and seemed to know what would happen next.

“I guess you anticipate it after what’s been going on through the season,” Allen said. “Changes happen, but change isn’t always good. So, we’ll see.”

The Bears are hoping to see improved play and better late-game management that leads to wins. The team hasn’t won in forever, dating back to a Week 6 victory over Jacksonville in London.

That has created some dark days at Halas Hall, but there’s optimism better’s coming under interim head coach Thomas Brown. He has done wonders with the offense and is taking steps to shore up issues that have bit the Bears recently in super close games.

“I think we’ve got maybe a week left to see if this thing can still end up the way we want it to,” Allen said. “You always keep going, always keep working to get better. At the end of the day, you have to work hard for yourself and obviously the team goals come.”

The team goals haven’t come and probably won’t after this extended losing skid, which has sunk the season. The experience hasn’t been all bad for the 12^th-year veteran out of Cal.

He would even consider a return engagement with Chicago.

“It’s a new start for me, a new position and a new place,” Allen said. “After talking with DJ (Moore) today, he wants me to run it back. So, we’ll see.”

Does he want to come back to Chicago, despite being set to hit unrestricted free agency this spring?

“Yeah. Absolutely.”

Allen and the Bears haven’t broached that topic. GM Ryan Poles acquired him for a fourth-round pick, while assuming the last year of a contract extension that will pay him an $18.1 million base salary, per OverTheCap.com, and a $5 million signing bonus.

He obviously still has value despite advanced age for an NFL player, especially since Waldon left. He has 18 catches for 200 yards and three touchdowns in that three-game span, by far the best stretch of his Bears tenure.

He has uncertain value heading into 2025, and that could determine whether or not he returns. Allen is comfortable here and working with the receiver corps, in addition to the coach-like responsibilities he has assumed under Beatty.

While Allen admits working with a rookie quarterback has complicated things while Caleb Williams experiences a learning curve, but he sees a bright future for the No. 1 overall pick and the receivers working with him.

“His potential is through the roof,” Allen said. “You see that through the weeks. He’s still having good games. His QBR is great. This turnover percentage is great. Just being about to do that, and learning the defenses and the offenses at the same time is tough in itself. I think the sky’s the limit for his talent.”